September 11 – Ten Years Later (Selected Statistics)

No doubt September 11, 2001 changed everything. But the business of actually measuring those changes has been as overlooked by most as the nationalities of the hijackers. The following is presented in the interest of truth, justice and the American way:

Correction: Saudi GDP change should be 216% (we both know I’ll never get around to redoing the graphic).

Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.

I left this comment on ZH and NO ONE will engage it. Don’t know if it is too stupid or what:

“How does inflation fit in here? Government spending is a larger percentage of GDP now than then, yes but…

Is inflation causing that number to be higher, and not necessarily new 9/11 spending?

And the chart by itself does not prove that 9/11 “caused” or is the reason for the increased spending.

Or have I got you wrong and you are not using this to make a case that 9/11 had us “sell” our freedom by allowing spending (or is that printing)?

Sorry to be dense. I want to get your point, I respect you as a poster and you have been kind enough to explain things to me in the past (a social psycholoist might say I am altercasting you into the role of the gentleman so that you will not yell at me for not getting what everyone else seems to think is obvious).”

Later I got more desperate and posted this:

“I feel really frustrated. I asked a question about the chart above earlier in the thread, but few seem to be talking about the chart. I thought the chart was the point of the post.

We have two sets of numbers. It does not mean 9/11 caused this. And if I am infering meaning Mark did not intend, it would be cool if someone could help me see what he is infering from the chart.”

Someone suggested I come over here and post, so I have. Problem is that I think it is worth talking about over there where the ZH crowd is more likely to see it.

I don’t mean to be unpleasant. The whole discussion over there looks surreal and not about your post at ll.

Nice to see you here (I laughed out loud at the “altercasting” line). It is highly unlikely that you will ever raise my ire. For whatever it’s worth, I “think” those who have incurred my wrath deserved it (but what the hell do I know).

Anyway, let me try to answer your question. I don’t see incidents in isolation…one domino topples the next, and before you know it you’ve got a huge mess on your hands. In January 1999, the CBO estimated THAT US NATIONAL DEBT HELD BY THE PUBLIC WOULD BE ZERO BY 2012!!!! That projection will be infinitely wrong for several reasons, not the least of which is that the CBO is comprised of 235 of the biggest idiots on Earth. Another reason often sited for the tectonic shift in America’s fortunes is “9-11 changed everything.”

Bullshit.

Our policies is what changed everything – Defense, Monetary, Fiscal & Tax. Commenting on anyone of them is a minefield. Rather than using this heart-wrenching anniversary as an opportunity to moralize or rant, I chose to present data points. A “report card” if you will. I feel the numbers speak for themselves in terms of America’s direction. Are we winning or losing? Inflation was included because I feel it’s a very important measure of other things. Getting a 5% raise is awesome if inflation is 2%, if inflation is 10%, not so much. If your “investments” don’t outperform inflation, your real return is less than zero, which means despite whatever you think you’ve been doing – it wasn’t investing.

By understating inflation, our leaders mask their failures (thus the alternate calc). I wanted to remind people how much more things cost, etc. Getting robbed sucks, but bankrupting yourself for safety’s sake doesn’t help your well-being.

The amount of stuff that hit the scrap heap regarding this post was enourmous. I decided I didn’t want to use the slaughter of innocents to prove that Krugnuts is a fucktard. And although I don’t approve of our military actions in response to 9-11, I’ve got nothing but profound respect and admiration for those who answer the call of duty. Hopefully we will never again confuse the warrior with the war.

Anyway, rather than stomp through an emotional minefield myself, I chose to publish forgotten details surrounding the day we all remember.

What exactly it all “means” is subject to interpretation, I guess. But I will say this: “Feeling good about doing bad” is a recurring theme with me. I hope this makes a little sense.

P.S. I am quite sure that reading through the ZH comments, which I usually enjoy very much, will result in a splitting headache today….so maybe later.

You were not saying 9/11 caused what resulted. But I think many folks have read that in and moved on. If you were trying to show with that chart that there was a cause and effect thing, it would have been a dishonest use of numbers. You would not do that on purpose so I thought there was a misinterpretation somewhere. I feel clear now.

You will get a head ache, a BIG ONE.

My ego is too big to “not look” at the comments page if I had a post published at ZH. You are a better person than me (I’d be like a kid at Christmas!).

Thanks again and thanks for the original post. Most informative. Readers have great feedback for numbers to add.

There’s so many facets that can (and should) be discussed. A lot of the “9-11 changed everything” rhetoric is actually “never waste a crisis,” stuff, which to me means grab more power and cram through your own agenda. The consequences of those actions are coming home to roost.

Like I said, there’s so many things that hit the scrap heap. The TSA, for example, groping women and photographing the children of law-abiding citizens nude. People who purchased tickets weeks in advance, mind you. In my opinion, an appropriate American response to the attacks would have been to A) Put locks on the cockpit doors, and B) If anyone tells passengers there’s a bomb on the plane, kick the living shit out of them. Problem solved. Pull up a picture of the hijackers, bad asses or momma’s boys? In school I had nuns that could have easily handled any of them, box cutters and all. Mohomed Atta looks sorta tough, but he was 5-8 , 165 lbs…no match for a 6-2 former Immaculata power forward….then I started thinking about the promise of “72 virgins” or whatever the number is and the nuns I had in school. What if Allah decided to fulfill his promise with them…Guess what? The only thing those misguided fruitcakes are in for is an eternity of ass-whoop….THEN the possibility that not all the hijackers even understood what the mission actually was crossed my mind…..and were the buildings “majectic towers” or asbestos-riddled eyesores?

As you can see, it kept spiralling out of control, so at some point I decided it best to remove myself from the equations, and post the numbers I felt were most relevant to a very long list of policy failures.

[…] Absolutely Killed in America Today »September 11:10 Years LaterZero HedgeFrom Mark McHugh of Across The StreetNo doubt September 11,2001 changed everything. But the business of actually measuring those […]

To tell you the truth, the September 11th attacks remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Manhattan history, New York County history, New York City history, New York history, United States history, North American history, Northern Hemisphere history, Western Hemisphere history, world history, history of humankind, and known history. Also, it is worst terrorist attack on anybody’s soil. I hope it will not happen again in our lifetimes.

Mark McHugh ponders the great issues of our time with, what many have called, a less-than-great brain. He is a Wall Street outsider (a.k.a. the black helicopter crowd), who believes there should not be antonyms found in the phrase, Truth, Justice and the American Way. Mark